Tell us a bit about yourself

Hi I’m Sue, a professional home organiser and decluttering expert trained by Marie Kondos team.  I started my Instagram account @alifemoreorganised four years ago on the second day of my KonMari training so I could share my training, organising and decluttering tips.  I can also be found on Facebook and Linked In.  

I’m constantly inspired by all the wonderful women on Instagram who are finding creative and fun ways to declutter and organise their homes.  Wouldn’t it be wonderful if everyone felt confident to get started with creating a home that looks and feels the way they’d like it to – rather than struggling to know how or find the time to get started?    

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How did you learn how to keep a home?

I learnt how to keep a home after discovering how not to do it as a student!  I realised I missed the calm and organised home that my Mum had created and tried to recreate it as best I could in my small student bedroom away from the chaos of the rest of the student house.

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What is your favourite homemaking activity?

I love a good kitchen reset, either before I go to bed so I come down to a tidy space in the morning or a deeper reset at the weekend, clearing away all the bits and pieces that have managed to find their way there over the course of the week.

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What homemaking product couldn’t you live without?

Containers – it doesn’t matter whether it’s a shoebox, basket or plastic tub, you can use whatever you have to hand.  I use them to store similar items together once I’ve decluttered.  It gives everything a home, which helps people know where to find things (and where to put them back) and also helps to prevent buying more than you need (hands up if you love a new cleaning product!).

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Do you ever feel overwhelmed? How do you cope?

Yes!  Life is busy and mess happens – that’s what family life is all about.  I sit down with a cup of tea and prioritise what’s important.  Since I decluttered and organised my house it’s made it much quicker to get things looking and feeling the way I like them to which gives me more time to focus on sorting out the important stuff.

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Why is #shinenotshame important to you?

Everybody should be able to get their home looking and feeling the way they want it to but not everyone has the time or knows how or where to get started.  Wouldn’t it be great if we all felt confident asking for help and advice – just like we feel happy to call a plumber when we have a leaking tap.  To me #shinenotshame is the start of a sharing, supportive community that cheers everybody on.

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What is an interesting fact about you?

I’ve just counted and realised that I’ve lived in 17 different homes!  We moved around with the RAF when I was younger and also have relocated with work during our careers.  Luckily, over the years mine and my husband’s tastes have merged and we now like the same sort of things – this made choosing our house and turning it in to our forever family home so much easier than it could have been.

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Find out more about Sue here